7 ways to celebrate Chinese New Year

Tacky New Year's tunes, fashion faux pas in blazing red, businesses either closed or packed -- traveling in China during Chinese New Year (CNY) can be discouraging.

Unless you know how to embrace the holiday like a local.

The Year of Snake begins on February 10 and celebrations will last for two weeks.

To get more from the experience than the ability to parrot "kung xi fa cai" or "gung hei fat choy" (Happy New Year), here are seven ways for travelers to celebrate Chinese New Year, aka Spring Festival.

Bet on horses

Chinese New Year Race. Now you know what to do with all those red packets.Believe it or not, CNY is a time for gamblers, professional and otherwise.

Many high rollers make their way to the gaudy casinos of Macau during this auspicious time.

A short boat ride away in Hong Kong, crowds gather for a day at the horse track.

The Chinese New Year Race is one of the most popular race days of the year. Held on the third day of Spring Festival (February 12, 2013), the city's Sha Tin Racecourse hosts 11 races.

In addition to horses charging, fans can watch traditional lion dances, spin fortune wheels and get a personal 2013 forecast from a feng shui master, so even the unluckiest gambler can enjoy the day.

Out of towners get in free to the races by providing valid travel documents.

Pray for good luck

Hold incense like this and you won't poke anyone's eye. While dodging falling ashes from burning incense, travelers can march with thousands of worshippers to temples around China on the first day of the Spring Festival, February 10, 2013.

Offering incense (touxiang) to God is said to be essential for ensuring luck for the year.

The pilgrimage to a temple can appear confusing to some, but it's a rich cultural celebration.

Whether visiting Beijing's Yonghe Temple, Shanghai's Longhua Temple, Hong Kong's Wong Tai Sin Temple or some other sacred spot, bring along three incense sticks (or a multiple of three), follow the mob and place the incense in one of the incense burners in front of or around the temple.

Try to hold your incense high to avoid poking someone in the eyes.

Extreme celebrants will start queuing long before a given temple’s opening at midnight on New Year. Are you brave enough to deal with the midnight craze? See the madness here.

Squeeze your way through a CNY bazaar

Fortune wheels help you to swirl back the luck.CNY bazaars used to be all-in-one temporary markets selling things needed for the Spring Festival -- flowers, candy, clothes and ornaments, among other items.

The bazaars have evolved a long way from pure CNY markets to flea markets selling DIY goodies. Most of them are embarrassingly cheesy, themed to the year's Chinese zodiac (snake this year), or, perhaps, Angry Birds.

Bazaars open for a few days till late at night before the new year.

Prime time to visit the markets is on New Year's Eve after a big family dinner. The stalls tend to stay open until midnight or even early the next morning while offering big discounts.

There are more than 10 CNY bazaars in Hong Kong alone.

For a more traditional bazaar, head to Taipei, where the city's 19th-century Dihua Street is turned into a traditional CNY bazaar every year.